What Is Preventive Care?
Preventive care is healthcare aimed at preventing illness or catching it early — before symptoms appear. Under the ACA, all marketplace and ACA-compliant private plans must cover a defined set of preventive services at $0 cost to you. No copay, no coinsurance, no deductible — completely free.
Covered Preventive Services (Adults)
- Annual wellness visit / physical exam
- Blood pressure screening
- Cholesterol screening
- Type 2 diabetes screening
- Colorectal cancer screening (age 45+)
- Mammograms (age 40+)
- Cervical cancer screening (Pap smear)
- Lung cancer screening (high-risk individuals)
- Depression screening
- HIV screening
- Immunizations (flu, COVID, hepatitis, HPV, etc.)
- Obesity screening and counseling
- Contraception (all FDA-approved methods)
Without Insurance: What These Cost
Annual physical: $200-$400. Blood work: $200-$500. Mammogram: $200-$350. Colonoscopy: $2,000-$4,000. With any ACA-compliant plan — marketplace or private — all of these are $0.
Non-ACA plans: Short-term health insurance and indemnity plans typically do NOT include free preventive care. If preventive care matters to you (and it should — catching cancer early vs. late is the difference between a $5,000 treatment and a $150,000 treatment), choose an ACA-compliant plan.
Related Terms
Last updated: March 30, 2026.
